scholarly journals The dependence of upper ocean gyres on wind and buoyancy forcing

2022 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tongya Liu ◽  
Hsien-Wang Ou ◽  
Xiaohui Liu ◽  
Yu-Kun Qian ◽  
Dake Chen
Keyword(s):  
Wind Forcing ◽  
Upper Ocean ◽  
Subpolar Gyre ◽  
Meridional Temperature Gradient ◽  
Buoyancy Forcing ◽  
Vertical Diffusivity ◽  
Ocean Gyres ◽  
Eddy Heat Transport ◽  
Diapycnal Diffusivity

AbstractA series of numerical simulations with different forcing conditions are carried out, to investigate the roles played by buoyancy and wind forcing on the upper ocean gyres, and to contrast the laminar and eddying regimes. Model experiments show that the buoyancy-driven eastward geostrophic flow tends to suppress the formation of the wind-driven subpolar gyre, but the northward eddy heat transport can homogenize the subpolar water and reduce the meridional temperature gradient by about two-third, thus counteracting the buoyancy effect and saving the subpolar gyre. For the subtropical gyre, its transport is enhanced by eddy mixing, and the role of buoyancy forcing is very sensitive to the choice of diapycnal diffusivity. Our results suggest that eddy effects must be considered in the dynamics of the subpolar gyre, and vertical diffusivity should be selected carefully in simulating the basin-wide circulations.

The Role Of Surface Waves On The Upper Ocean: Application In Indonesian Seas

Jurnal Segara ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 1 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rita Tisiana Dwi Kuswardani ◽  
Fangli Qiao
Keyword(s):  
Surface Waves ◽  
Upper Ocean ◽  
Indonesian Seas

scholarly journals The Influence of the Barrier Layer on SST Response during Tropical Cyclone Wind Forcing Using Idealized Experiments

2018 ◽  
Vol 48 (7) ◽  
pp. 1471-1478 ◽  
Author(s):  
Johna E. Rudzin ◽  
Lynn K. Shay ◽  
William E. Johns
Keyword(s):  
Mixed Layer ◽  
Barrier Layer ◽  
Wind Forcing ◽  
Upper Ocean ◽  
Salinity Stratification ◽  
Sst Cooling ◽  
Temperature Regimes ◽  
Moisture Fluxes ◽  
Upper Ocean Response ◽  
Heat And Moisture

AbstractMultiple studies have shown that reduced sea surface temperature (SST) cooling occurs under tropical cyclones (TCs) where a fresh surface layer and subsurface halocline exist. Reduced SST cooling in these scenarios has been attributed to a barrier layer, an upper-ocean feature in the tropical global oceans in which a halocline resides within the isothermal mixed layer. Because upper-ocean stratification theoretically reduces ocean mixing induced by winds, the barrier layer is thought to reduce SST cooling during TC passage, sustaining heat and moisture fluxes into the storm. This research examines how both the inclusion of salinity and upper-ocean salinity stratification influences SST cooling for a variety of upper-ocean thermal regimes using one-dimensional (1D) ocean mixed layer (OML) models. The Kraus–Turner, Price–Weller–Pinkel, and Pollard–Rhines–Thompson 1D OML schemes are used to examine SST cooling and OML deepening during 30 m s−1 wind forcing (~category 1 TC) for both temperature-only and temperature–salinity stratification cases. Generally, the inclusion of salinity (a barrier layer) reduces SST cooling for all temperature regimes. However, results suggest that SST cooling sensitivities exist depending on thermal regime, salinity stratification, and the 1D OML model used. Upper-ocean thermal and haline characteristics are put into context of SST cooling with the creation of a barrier layer baroclinic wave speed to emphasize the influence of salinity stratification on upper-ocean response under TC wind forcing.

The Response of Buoyant Coastal Plumes to Upwelling-Favorable Winds*

2004 ◽  
Vol 34 (11) ◽  
pp. 2458-2469 ◽  
Author(s):  
Steven Lentz
Keyword(s):  
Wind Stress ◽  
Vertical Mixing ◽  
Wind Forcing ◽  
Ekman Transport ◽  
Entrainment Rate ◽  
Buoyant Plume ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Buoyancy Forcing ◽  
Density Anomaly ◽  
Variable Wind

Abstract To better understand the response of a buoyant coastal plume to wind-induced upwelling, a two-dimensional theory is developed that includes entrainment. The primary assumption is that competition between wind-driven vertical mixing and lateral buoyancy forcing in the region where the isopycnals slope upward to intersect the surface results in continual entrainment at the offshore edge of the plume. The theory provides estimates of the buoyant plume characteristics and offshore displacement as a function of time t, given the wind stress, the characteristics of the buoyant plume prior to the onset of the wind forcing, and a critical value for the bulk Richardson number (Ric). The theory predicts that, for t̂ ≡ t/ts, the plume density anomaly decreases as (1 + t̂)−1, the thickness increases as (1 + t̂)1/3, the width increases as (1 + t̂)2/3, and the plume average entrainment rate decreases as (1 + t̂)−2/3. Here ts = 2Ao/(RicUE) is the time for entrainment to double the cross-sectional area of the plume Ao at the onset of the wind forcing, where UE is the Ekman transport. The theory reproduces results from 20 numerical model runs by Fong and Geyer, including their estimates of the plume-average entrainment rate (correlations greater than 0.98 and regression coefficients approximately 1 for plume characteristics and 1.7 for the entrainment rate). The theory, modified to allow for time-variable wind stress, also reproduces the observed response of the buoyant coastal plume from Chesapeake Bay during an 11-day period of upwelling winds in August 1994.

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